1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus for image recording on a recording material such as paper.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are already known various image recording apparatus such as electrophotographic copiers. Such apparatus have generally been designed for image recording with black color, but there are recently proposed copiers, ink jet printers, thermal printers etc. for two-color recording in black and red or for full-color recording. There are also proposed recording apparatus capable of a recording mode for different image processing in specified areas.
Also the U.S. patent application Ser. No. 374,102, filed May 3, 1982, and commonly assigned with the present application, discloses a novel image recording apparatus in which areas are specified by blue loops on an original document in black and red colors, and the image recording corresponding to the inside or outside of said areas is made the same as in the original document or is inverted in colors.
Furthermore the U.S. patent application Ser. No. 370,464, filed Apr. 21, 1982, and assigned in common with the present application, discloses an image recording apparatus capable of a normal recording mode with a resolution of 8 dots/mm, a fine recording mode with a resolution of 16 dots/mm, and another recording mode with a modified image density.
Such recording apparatus with plural recording modes, though effective for office jobs, will merely be a waste of cost and space if its manipulation requires a trained operator.
Also in such recording apparatus the internal mechanisms are generally concealed by the outer casing so that the recording mode in execution can hardly be confirmed from the outside until the completed recording sheet is ejected from the discharge slot of the apparatus.
Furthermore the U.S. patent application Ser. No. 328,240, filed Dec. 7, 1981, and assigned in common with the present application, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,476,486, issued Oct. 9, 1984, proposes a recording apparatus provided with plural recording units for simultaneous image recording for the same information in order to reduce the time required for obtaining plural records from the same original document or same information. In such apparatus it is difficult to obtain recordings of a desired number in case one of the plural recording units develops a failure during the recording operation.